


Personal Wizard

by orphan_account



Category: Original Work
Genre: Co-Written, F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-23
Updated: 2014-01-23
Packaged: 2018-01-09 19:29:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1149914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prince Thomas gets a most unusual birthday present -- his own personal wizard. What is he going to do with a gift like that?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Personal Wizard

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for Writerverse over on Livejournal. The lovely [alien_writings](http://alien-writings.livejournal.com/) on livejournal was my cowriter for this story. :)

“Is Matthew coming?”

“He should be back from his hunting trip by tomorrow, Thomas.”

He sighed. “Mother, that means he isn’t coming.”

“Now stop that frown!” Lucia said firmly. “Your brother is going to try his best to get here, but with the weather I don’t think he’ll get here on time.”

“He never should’ve taken that hunting trip so close to my birthday.”

“Did I ever tell you about the time your father missed our first wedding anniversary because he was out on a hunting trip?” Lucia asked with a small smile.

“Father missed an anniversary?” Thomas asked with a laugh. “That isn’t like him. He usually plans for everything.”

“Yes, that is true, Thomas, but he can’t plan for a storm, though he certainly has tried over the years.”

Thomas snorted and was in the middle of catching his breath from all the laughter when his father entered the room. They locked eyes, and he couldn’t help but keep laughing.

“Lucia, did you tell him the anniversary story?”

“I was only trying to make him feel better, dear.”

Frederick frowned. “Thomas, today is your twentieth birthday, which marks your entry into adulthood -- immature acts like this will not be as tolerated!”

“Oh Frederick, you have to admit it is a bit amusing,” Lucia said with a giggle. “I can only imagine that Matthew will do the same thing once he and his fiancée marry this summer!”

“If it weren’t for you convincing him he never would’ve gotten married!” Frederick muttered.

Thomas tuned out once his parents starting talking about Matthew. He was pushing twenty seven. For someone of that age to be unmarried, it was odd. If it weren’t for their mother Lucia Thomas wondered if he ever would’ve found a woman to make his wife.

“Thomas!”

He jumped to his feet when his father shouted his name and realized that he had been dazing out. After giving his father a nervous look, he responded, “Yes, father?”

“Your party is about to start love,” Lucia said with a gentle smile. “You don’t want to miss it now do you?”

“No, of course not, mother.”

“Then get moving!” Frederick grumbled.

Thomas was less than thrilled to be at his party that was filled with the various lords, ladies, and other nobles. He recognized a few family members and close friends of kingdom, but, for the most part, they were the obligatory people invited to such events. There was no one his age, but there never really had been in the palace. It only contributed to the loneliness that he felt.

The party dragged on and Thomas thanked everyone for the birthday greetings and the gifts he had yet to open. Every so often his mother would flash him a gentle smile or his father would gently squeeze his shoulder. The man could be very gruff but deep down he knew that Thomas was uncomfortable but the party still had to go on. Turning twenty was a very momentous occasion in their kingdom, after all. It was when you reached adulthood.

“Thomas, come up here!” Frederick called towards the middle of the party. “I think it’s time for opening gifts!”

Thomas found that the gifts were the usual ones a prince received on a birthday. Some represented his venture into adulthood while some were simply extravagant gifts. He thanked them all and finally the last gift was the one from his parents, but he furrowed his brow because there didn’t seem to be anything left.

“No, we haven’t forgotten you, Thomas!” Lucia said with a laugh. “My King, go introduce Thomas to his birthday present.”

He balked a bit at the word introduce but didn’t question it as his father exited the room. Thomas heard a few whispers (one of the voices was his father) and then he came out with a tall, dark haired main trailing close behind.

“Thomas, I’d like to introduce you to Sebastian.”

“And who is Sebastian father?” Thomas asked warily.

“He is your own personal wizard.”

Thomas felt all the color drain from his face as he gazed at his so-called gift. The looks on his parent’s faces were ones of happiness -- they didn’t look embarrassed in the least. He knew that wizards were often employed by royal and noble families, but never had Thomas heard about one being given as a gift.

Sebastian cleared his throat and looked at his father. “Thank you, sire.”

“Thank you,” Thomas forced out as he looked at his parents. After there was a round of clapping, the crowd dispersed and went back to doing whatever they had been doing before. It left Thomas alone with Sebastian, and he tried desperately to avoid looking anywhere but his new personal wizard.

“It’s nice to meet you, sire,” Sebastian said awkwardly.

“Thomas,” he corrected quickly but just as awkwardly. “It’s… nice to meet you too, given the circumstances.”

“Well the crowd seems quite pleased with the last gift,” Sebastian muttered.

“I don’t know what my father was thinking. It’s not like I don’t have servants.”

“Yes, but, unlike them, I have magic in case you get too bratty.”

Thomas started to frown but then broke out into a fit of laughter. It was a nice change from the tone of the party, but it still didn’t change the awkwardness over receiving another person as a birthday gift.

What had his father been thinking?

* * *

 

“Can you turn my parents into toads for me?” Thomas pleaded with huge hazel eyes.

Sebastian just raised an eyebrow as they sat in the dining area of Thomas’ private wing. “If I did that, the kingdom would be thrown into utter chaos. Besides, I prefer turning people into salamanders. Toads are a bit tired, don’t you think?”

The thought of the inevitable political problems should his parents be incapacitated didn’t deter the young prince. “Well, then, can you turn them into salamanders? That’ll do. As long as they’re turned into something,” he said.

“Did you not hear the part about how the kingdom would be thrown into chaos?” Sebastian muttered, though he couldn’t prevent a tiny smile from appearing on his face. He took a bite of the food the servants had prepared -- it was exquisite. This assignment, to be Prince Thomas’ personal wizard, was odd, but he had to admit the food was delicious. He didn’t exactly mind Thomas’ company, either -- requests for parental shapeshifting aside -- even if he still hadn’t gotten over being the young man’s birthday present. It had been a few weeks, but that still disconcerted him. It wasn’t his place to question royal decisions, but surely gifting other human beings in this day and age wasn’t usual?

“I’ll take the chaos,” Thomas said.

“So you’d have your brother Matthew take the throne because your parents have annoyed you enough that you want to turn them into salamanders?” Sebastian didn’t hide his skepticism, though he kept himself from speaking out about Matthew’s leadership abilities. He had called Thomas “bratty” earlier, but that was different than insulting the heir to the throne. Prince Matthew had potential, but he spent entirely too much time out hunting and not enough time learning how to manage things around the Star Palace.

Thomas shrugged. “I guess not -- maybe you could turn just one of them into a salamander?” He paused, brushing his light brown hair out of his eyes. “I don’t really want you to transform my parents, but…”

“But what?” Sebastian noticed the notes of distress and annoyance in Thomas’ voice.

“They’ve been nagging me,” he grumbled, scowling.

“Nagging you about what?” He took another bite of food and watched the young man sitting across from him. The prince seemed reluctant to talk about what bothered him -- silence hung in the air, and Sebastian felt out of his element. As a wizard, he was trained in all manner of magical feats, but his classes at the Academy hadn’t taught him much about dealing with others’ personal problems. He hadn’t majored in magical counseling.

“Stuff…” Thomas muttered. A distinct blush appeared on his cheeks, and he stared down at his food as if it were suddenly fascinating.

Of course, Thomas’ reluctance to talk made Sebastian more curious. He also just didn’t like seeing the young man so uncomfortable. What would cause him to blush like that?

Sebastian tried to keep his voice gentle, and he now wished he had taken a few more courses in magical counseling. This was rather awkward. “May I ask what kind of stuff?”

“You know...stuff stuff,” he said, still staring down at his food.

“I’m afraid I don’t know anything about ‘stuff stuff,’” Sebastian said. He sipped his water, thinking even the water here surpassed what had been available at the Academy. The wizard waited, hoping Thomas would reveal what troubled him.

“People...stuff,” Thomas said. “You know...marriage? My parents want me to marry before I get old like Matthew. They want me to meet a lady.” His still-present blush darkened, and Sebastian understood then why they young man acted so embarrassed.

“I see,” he said, taking another bite of food because he wasn’t sure what to say yet.

“I do want to meet a lady,” the prince said. “Very much -- but I...how do I even talk to one I want to court?”

“Talk to her like you would talk to anyone else?” Sebastian said, now definitely out of his element. Being a talented wizard, he had attracted plenty of women without trying, but he had preferred to concentrate on his studies. “Just put on your natural charm,” he added. Thomas did have a significant degree of natural charm, and being royalty wouldn’t hurt his chances of finding a partner. What could Sebastian even do to help on this matter?

“Natural charm?” Thomas muttered, his fading blush returning.

Blast, Sebastian hadn’t meant to make the young man blush. “Well, you’re...personable. Women like personable, don’t they?” he said.

“I...suppose,” he said. Curiosity lit up his eyes. “Maybe you can tell me how you got girls at the Academy?”

“Being top of my class helped,” Sebastian said, “but I preferred studying to...other things.”

“Well, I don’t have the ability to turn people into salamanders,” Thomas said, frowning.

Sebastian couldn’t help smirking. “I don’t think you need the ability to transform anyone in order to get a lady -- you’re royalty, for one thing.”

“Yes, but my brother’s going to inherit the throne.”

“Still...being the second son shouldn’t hurt your chances too much.” There were innumerable women in the kingdom who would want to marry even the second son of the King -- never mind that Thomas did have that natural charm and wasn’t unattractive as far as these things went.

“I guess being second son wouldn’t hurt too much,” Thomas said, his mood brightening. “You’ll help me with what to say when my parents do bring ladies for me to meet?”

“I’ll help,” Sebastian said, though he wasn’t sure how to help the young man with this problem.

Despite not being an actual expert in talking to women, the wizard would help Thomas with this endeavor. It was his duty to do as the young man asked -- unless it involved turning his parents into salamanders, anyway -- and he would do his duty. Sebastian found himself not wanting to disappoint the prince, either.

He just hoped he would be useful.

* * *

 

The next day, Thomas felt even more confused and nervous after his conversation with Sebastian. He still wasn’t sure how to talk girls, let alone approach them. The entire thing just seemed very daunting, and when he voiced his fears to Sebastian the next afternoon, the magic user gave him an (expected) blunt response.

“I gave you some useful advice yesterday, but it can only get you so far. The thing you want to do is go talk to an actual woman,” Sebastian explained. “You might as well go straight to the source.”

“You have no idea do you?”

“None whatsoever -- which is why you should definitely listen to me,” Sebastian said with a wink.

Thomas became flustered and nodded. For the rest of the day, he tried to find a woman he trusted enough to confide in on this. In the end, he went to his mother. Lucia was the only one he felt comfortable enough talking to about such a thing. The only thing he didn’t plan for was that his brother would be there because he had taken (yet another) hunting trip.

“When did you get home, Matthew?”

“Last night, little brother!” he exclaimed before pulling him into a hug that nearly knocked the wind out of Thomas. “How are you doing?”

“I could be better,” Thomas admitted. “I’m just a little… conflicted about things.”

“What about, dear?”

“What exactly do women want?” Thomas asked.

The second he posed the question, he could see Matthew thinking. He answered before Lucia could get a chance to so much as open her mouth.

“Women are like rabbits. You have to approach them quietly and with sensitivity in mind. If all else fails, make sure to give them a cuddle. I found that they like that before you go in for the kill.”

“What is it you do on those hunting trips?” Lucia asked with a shake of her head. “Matthew dear, you are very, very wrong.”

“Well, Katherine never seemed to mind,” Matthew said in his defense.

Lucia smiled. “Sweetheart, that’s because we warned her beforehand what you were like.”

“Mother, do you have any advice for me?” Thomas asked as he cleared his throat. While he was always curious about various aspects of his brother’s personality, he wanted to get back to the subject at hand.

“Thomas, please ignore what your brother said and remember this -- a woman wants someone to love them for the way they are and to treat them with respect. It doesn’t hurt to be a fantastic listener and gourmet cook, but those are completely optional.”

He laughed and then nodded. “Thank you, mother and… thank you Matthew.”

“So women don’t like that?” Matthew asked Lucia. “Why has Katherine never said anything? Does she even like to listen to my hunting stories?”

“She does so because she cares…”

Thomas didn’t hear the rest of the conversation because he left the room. He had to admit that speaking to his mother had made him feel more sure about some things, but it didn’t change the fact that he had never spoken to another girl (at least not with the attention of courting her). It was uncharted territory, and he found himself going back to Sebastian.

“You are joking aren’t you?” the magic user muttered when Thomas told him about his conversation with Matthew and his mother.

“No…” Thomas muttered. “Matthew said that, but he didn’t mean it. He just doesn’t know any better!”

"Anyone should be able to realize girls wouldn't like being compared to prey animals!"

Thomas sighed. “Matthew didn’t mean it, Sebastian. He just isn’t good with people.”

“I’ll take your word for it then. It’s not as if I know him.”

“My mother gave me some good advice, but the thing is I still don’t know if I could do it very well without any practice.”

“What are you saying?” Sebastian asked warily.

“Could I practice on you?” Thomas pleaded. “Please, Sebastian. I really need your help, and you’re practically the only person I consider a friend around here.”

Sebastian blinked in surprise. “You consider me a friend?”

“Well, of course I do,” Thomas said firmly. “I know you’re supposed to be my personal wizard, but you’re more than that.”

“I… fine. You can practice on me,” Sebastian muttered. “You’re too cute to refuse.”

Thomas swallowed and tried to hide the blush he felt on his cheeks. “You think so?”

“It’s why your natural charm will probably help you with the ladies, but I’ll help you out if you want. I just draw the line at wearing makeup or a dress.”

“Duly noted.”

* * *

 

“I have a brilliant idea,” Thomas said, nearly shouting as he bounded into the living room.

Sebastian looked up from his magic textbook He had already spotted an error in it. Magic did not work that way, and this was an educational text? When the young man spoke, Sebastian stopped thinking of the embarrassing error, though. For a reason he couldn’t explain, his stomach twisted.

“And what is your idea?” Sebastian asked with not a small amount of wariness.

“We should go on a date,” Thomas said. He beamed at Sebastian, his face full of nothing but utter sincerity.

The wizard dropped his textbook, and it thumped onto the floor. Sebastian hissed out a curse that would bring down the wrath of his Academy professors with its strength. He could not have heard Thomas correctly.

“You want to what?” the wizard muttered once he had regained some composure. His face still burned.

“Sorry -- I didn’t mean startle you, but don’t you think it would be a good idea for me to practice actually dating girls? You’re the closest thing I have to someone I’d court, so you can be my pretend date. I can use you to figure out how to behave on a real date,” Thomas said, rambling on like his idea made sense, which it didn’t.

“Excuse me?” Sebastian said, trying to comprehend Thomas’ ludicrous plan.

“So, will you be my practice date?” the prince said, now bouncing on his feet.

He gathered his textbook from off the floor. “I…”

“Remember, you said you’d help me practice talking to girls, and I promise I won’t make you wear a dress or anything.” Thomas looked at the wizard with those huge hazel eyes of his, and Sebastian found himself unable to refuse the young man even if he didn’t see the value in pretend dating.

“Fine,” he sighed. “We can go on a date.” He paused. “For practice, of course.”

“Of course it’d be for practice,” Thomas said.

Two days later, the wizard found himself grumbling in front of his mirror, unable to get his hair into its proper place. His curls refused to cooperate, no matter how much magic he used on them. Sebastian prided himself on an immaculate appearance, so why couldn’t he get it right today, of all days? He needed to look good on his date -- even if it was fake.

Thomas knocked -- the wizard recognized the knock as belonging to him -- and Sebastian’s heart leaped into his throat. “I’ll be ready in a minute,” he shouted, scowling at his reflection. His dark brown eyes were the exact shade of his hair, and those eyes glowered back at him as his hair continued to misbehave. He didn’t spend another hour trying to get it right only because he didn’t want to keep Thomas waiting.

Sebastian pulled himself away from the mirror and opened his front door. He found the prince in casual clothes, holding a picnic basket. “I’m sorry,” the wizard muttered, unable to make eye contact. “I was...trying to get my hair to look good.”

“Your hair always looks good,” Thomas said. “Care for a picnic, my sweet?”

“That would -- be lovely,” Sebastian muttered, finding it difficult to speak.

“I know just the spot,” he said, gesturing down the hallway.

The wizard followed Thomas through the Star Palace and out onto the grounds. They walked in silence, an odd awkwardness settling between them. A pretend date shouldn’t have felt this uncomfortable. Before it could get too unbearable, the pair came to a tree at the top of a small hill. It had wide green leaves and provided plenty of shade for the unusually hot day. Thomas put his basket on the ground. He produced a red and white checkered picnic blanket and unrolled it. He then placed the basket upon the blanket and motioned for Sebastian to sit. 

“You first, my sweet,” Thomas said.

“Thank you,” Sebastian said, sitting down and wondering if the prince was going to call him “my sweet” throughout the entire date. He didn’t know how he felt about that.

Thomas sat down himself. He then opened the basket. “What would you like to eat?” he asked, mentioning an impressive variety of food, all much fancier fare than would be normal for a picnic.

“You...outdid yourself with this,” the wizard said, blinking. Thomas had put in a lot of effort for this fake date.

The prince’s hazel eyes sparkled. “Anything for you.”

It took Sebastian a few moments to find the words to request the food items he wanted. Thomas grinned as he grabbed them and served the pair with a surprising amount of flourish.

“Oops, I almost forgot the most important thing,” Thomas said.

What could that be? He had already produced all the food.

Thomas then made a perfect red rose appear in his hand, almost as if he had magic. 

Sebastian stared at it, not believing what he saw. “...what is this for?” he breathed.

“How thoughtless would I be if I didn’t bring a gift for my wonderful date?” Thomas said, handing the rose to the wizard. “I had the Palace gardener make sure it had no thorns -- I wouldn’t want to hurt you.”

He took the rose at the exact moment Prince Matthew appeared on the hill. “And what’s going on here?” Matthew murmured.

“We’re on a date,” Thomas said, smiling.

“Oh, are you?” his brother said.

The wizard considered using an invisibility spell, though that’d be rather rude. Thomas hadn’t mentioned their date was fake. Sebastian wondered if he should clarify, but he decided not to do so -- because he couldn’t make himself speak, of course.

Thomas nodded. “Yes, we are.”

“Well, have a good time, then,” Matthew said, drifting off before Sebastian could so much as move.

After his elder brother had disappeared, Thomas looked at the wizard with concern. “Are you alright?” he asked.

“I’m -- fine,” he muttered.

Why wouldn’t he be fine?

* * *

 

The more often he and Sebastian went on the dates, the more comfortable Thomas became. They went on quite a few in the coming months, and he would constantly thank Sebastian for doing this for him -- he needed to be ready when he met the woman his parents would find for him. The last thing Thomas wanted to be was some bumbling fool that couldn’t even manage a conversation with a lady.

He felt so much more at ease with Sebastian’s help and was eternally grateful to his friend. Thomas was sure that when the time came to talk to an actual lady he would be ready. There would be no tripping over his words, worrying, or getting scared out of his wits. He was certain of this until his father brought an uninvited guest to one of his dates with Sebastian.

“Thomas!”

When he heard his name called, Thomas looked over his shoulder and barely paid attention to Sebastian, who practically yanked his hand away from his. Thomas had taken it with the intention that handholding was a sweet thing to do, but, with his father approaching, it completely slipped his mind.

“Thomas, I want to introduce you to someone,” Frederick said with this wide smile on his face. He murmured something underneath his breath, and slowly a girl emerged from behind the king. She was a short thing with long blonde hair and the biggest blue eyes. Her presence caught Thomas off guard at first, and he didn’t know what to say.

“Father, who have you brought?”

“This is Lady Claire,” Frederick told him. There was so much glee in his voice that it startled Thomas (and Sebastian, too, from the look on his face). “I’ll leave you to talk.”

“Hello,” Thomas said with a shy smile that Claire quickly returned. Instead of saying a hello in return, though, she took a step back.

“I’m sorry I interrupted you two,” she said with a shy giggle. “It was not my intention to intrude on your date, but your father was very insistent I come meet you as soon as we arrived in town.”

Thomas smiled. “I don’t mind at all. Do you, Sebastian?”

“I… suppose not,” he said after a while. “There was no harm done, my lady.”

“My presence really isn’t bothering you?”

“Not at all!” Thomas exclaimed.

“I would’ve thought you two would want to be alone,” Claire said with a small laugh. “My older siblings always hated it when I intruded on their outings with the ones they were courting or being courted by.”

“We’re… not courting,” Sebastian said after Thomas failed to speak. “This is simply…”

Thomas turned to Sebastian and gave him a pleading look. He didn’t want the magic user to admit the truth about these fake dates because that would be much too embarrassing. A prince would never admit to getting such lessons in front of a girl as pretty as Claire. The look on Sebastian’s face showed that he understood this all too well.

“It’s still too early to call it courting, so it’s just simple outings right now.”

Claire blinked and smiled apologetically. “Shall I go back to the castle then? I still see the king in the distance, and it appears that he is spying upon us. Like I said, he was very insistent about me meeting you.”

“Then join us!” Thomas exclaimed with a smile. “You don’t mind, do you, Sebastian?”

“No, I don’t mind, sire.”

Thomas grinned at Sebastian and then gave him a small wink. He looked away at that moment and failed to register how flustered the magic user became at his action.

“Please sit down, Lady Claire,” Thomas said.

Claire smiled and obliged.

* * *

 

Thomas walked back to the castle with Sebastian (the Lady Claire had taken her leave earlier), and there was a smile on his face. He hadn’t gotten nervous at all! There had been some bumbling, but he had managed to talk to her, which was all thanks to his friend.

“Thank you, Sebastian,” he said as they approached the gates.

“For what?”

“Oh, don’t be so naïve!” Thomas teased. “I want to thank you for helping me, of course!”

The other man gave him a nod and then a half smile. “Your charm helped.”

Thomas had a response, but, as they came inside, he found Lucia waiting. She wore a look on her face that could only be described as an expression of annoyance.

“What did father do now?” he said.

Lucia sighed. “I am so sorry your father interrupted your outing. He was just insistent on you meeting Claire as soon as possible even though I told him to wait.”

“It was no trouble, mother. She was quite lovely.”

“You are fond of her?” Lucia asked with surprise. She glanced at Thomas and then Sebastian, though her gaze lingered on Sebastian for a bit longer. Thomas lifted a brow over it but didn’t question it.

“Yes, I suppose I am.”

“Well that’s a surprise,” Lucia said softly. “I suppose you won’t mind it then.”

“What won’t I mind, mother?”

Lucia blinked. “Why, Claire becoming your betrothed, of course.

* * *

 

Ever since Claire had arrived at the Star Palace, Sebastian had been in a grumpier mood than usual. The lady was nothing but lovely and a perfect match for young Prince Thomas. Her biggest flaw seemed to be that she giggled too much -- and this apparent flawlessness bothered the wizard. No human being should be as friendly, sweet and pretty as the Lady Claire.

Sebastian paced in his living room, trying to burn off his agitation. The pacing didn’t help much, and he found himself scowling at the floor. He considered causing some minor magical explosions to release all this unnecessary energy, though his Academy professors would have frowned at that. They weren’t here, so Sebastian looked around the room for objects he wouldn’t miss -- he wondered if it would be wrong to blast that textbook with the erroneous spells inside it. Wizards in general saw destroying books as a major sin, but that particular book was an embarrassment.

A knock on the door interrupted his bad mood -- Thomas’ distinctive knock. At that noise, Sebastian stopped pacing. He did his best to remove his scowl, finding it easy enough when he knew he’d see Thomas in just a moment. 

The wizard opened the door and let a rather nervous Thomas in. Why did the prince seem so out of sorts?

“I need to make my fiancee like me,” Thomas said, fidgeting with his hands.

Sebastian raised an eyebrow. “I was under the impression she already liked you.” That was a good thing, the wizard told himself.

The prince frowned. “Yeah...but I get the oddest feeling she doesn’t think I’m interested in her. I need to show her I am.”

“And why wouldn’t she think you were interested?” the wizard said, his eyebrow still raised.

“I don’t know… Do you have any idea why that might be?”

“I’m not sure why -- it’s not like you haven’t been taking her on dates,” Sebastian said, shrugging. He had been forced to attend every one of those dates as their chaperone, so he knew plenty about the outings.

All of a sudden, the prince’s demeanor changed from nervous to eager. His hazel eyes lit up. “I need to impress her, and I have just the thing -- you can do magic for us. Something really big, so she’ll know how I feel. Any girl would fall for your tricks,” Thomas said. “So if I get you to do a trick, Claire’ll have to like me. What else do I have a personal wizard for, if not magic like this, right?”

Sebastian tried to repress the scowl that wanted to take over his face again. Thomas gave him a curious look but said nothing. Despite his sudden desire to scowl, the wizard did come up with something to fulfill Thomas’ request.

After a moment, he even managed to force himself to smile. “Why else would you keep me around, indeed? I have an idea -- tell Claire to meet you by the pond after sunset tomorrow,” he said.

“Oh, what are you going to do?” Thomas asked.

“That’s a secret,” Sebastian said. He wanted to surprise the young man.

Thomas pouted, but he nodded. “I’ll go tell Claire.”

He exited the room, leaving Sebastian alone to plan something that should guarantee a reaction from the prince.

A day later, after sunset, Claire, Thomas and Sebastian sat on a blanket at the edge of the pond. Claire gazed fondly at Thomas, who seemed more interested in the water than in his fiancee.

“Are you going to summon a sea serpent?” Thomas asked. “Is that why you asked us to meet you at the pond?”

Claire giggled. “I hope not -- that’d be scary, wouldn’t it?”

“No, I’m not going to summon a sea serpent -- this is a freshwater pond, for one, and sea serpents much prefer salt water,” Sebastian muttered, amused Thomas’ terrible guess. “It’d make one rather angry to be summoned to a freshwater pond, and I daresay you wouldn’t want to meet an angry sea serpent.”

“So, what are you going to do?” the prince said, his eyes lighting up. 

Sebastian smirked at him. “Just you watch -- keep your eyes on the water. There won’t be any sea serpents -- this’ll be much better.”

The sky had darkened to a midnight blue, and the moon was but a sliver in that sky -- still, somehow, a rainbow arced across the pond. It glowed with a perfect range of the seven colors, as clear as anything -- in fact, the magical rainbow shined clearer than any natural rainbow could ever hope to do.

“Ooh,” Claire breathed.

Sebastian had to maintain concentration on his magical light show, but a part of him still felt Thomas’ gaze on him. He didn’t let that break his focus, though, and he might have been imagining it, anyway.

Two figures made of white light -- a man and a woman, with remarkable resemblance to Thomas and Claire -- appeared above the rainbow. The figures began to dance together atop the rainbow, moving with grace no human could achieve.

Out of the corner of his eye, Sebastian saw three people approaching the pond, drawn by his display: Matthew, Katherine and Lucia. They didn’t threaten his focus nearly as much as Thomas’ possible gaze did. Lucia hung back, but Matthew and Katherine approached right to the edge of the pond. Sebastian couldn’t help wondering if they would fall into it. Thomas’ elder brother then grabbed his fiancee’s arm.

“So pretty,” both he and Katherine said at the same time.

Sebastian made a big pink heart appear over the rainbow and the dancers, wanting to reinforce the mood of romance. He had a job to do, after all.

Thomas grabbed the wizard’s arm. “You’re -- it’s beautiful, Seb,” he said, his voice full of wonder.

At that, Sebastian’s concentration broke, and the whole display vanished in a flash of white light. Thomas seemed to realize what he was doing, and he let go of his arm. Sebastian looked anywhere but at Thomas, his face burning.

“Aw, what happened to the lights?” Katherine said, pouting.

“That was...the grand finale,” Sebastian muttered. He didn’t think he had the mental energy to start up the light show again. The wizard felt Lucia’s gaze on him now. He glanced over at Thomas’ mother. She gave him an intense look that suggested she knew something he didn’t.

“Wasn’t that nice, Thomas?” Claire murmured, her eyes on her date.

“Yeah...nice...” he said. His eyes flickered over to Sebastian, who could feel them even though he still refused to look directly at Thomas.

What was the young man doing, acting like this on his date with Claire? It annoyed the wizard, who just wished they could go back to how things were before she had appeared at the Star Palace.

Sebastian knew he couldn’t have what he wanted, though, no matter how much he wished for it.

* * *

 

Thomas was still in awe over the light show the next day. He went to Sebastian’s rooms to thank him again, but the magic user didn’t answer no matter how hard Thomas knocked.

“Sebastian?”

After a while, his shoulders slumped in defeat, and Thomas walked off. He supposed Sebastian must be busy with something. While he was his personal wizard, he did have a life of his own.

“Good morning, Thomas,” Lucia said to him as he passed her in the hallway that morning. “Is something wrong, love?”

“I can’t find Sebastian,” Thomas muttered. “I wanted to thank him again for the light show yesterday, but he’s not answering his door.”

“I am sure he’s simply out for a walk or something like that. You’ll find him soon,” Lucia reassured her youngest son.

“I just want to make sure he understands how much I enjoyed it, mother. It was an amazing show.”

Lucia smiled. “It was quite an enjoyable spectacle and a very sweet thing he did for you and Claire.”

“This is the very reason why I want to thank him, but he insists on talking a walk so early,” Thomas huffed. “I suppose I will have to go look for him.”

“Thomas, don’t forget you invited Claire to join us for a family lunch today. It would be wise to be back in time for it.”

“Mother, I need to find Sebastian first. It’s important that I thank him,” Thomas said firmly. “Do you think he believes I wasn’t fond of it? I hope he isn’t upset.”

Another sigh came from Lucia, but Thomas paid it no attention. It was as if he hadn’t heard her -- he focused completely on Sebastian and his current whereabouts.

“Thomas, before you go off, could you answer me something?” Lucia asked as Thomas was about to walk away.

“Of course, mother, but please hurry. Time is of the essence here.”

Lucia raised her eyebrow. “Excuse me?”

“I… I… sorry, mother. What did you want to ask?”

“I thought so,” Lucia muttered, but then she smiled slightly. “Sweetheart, do you think it’s fair to keep leading Claire on like you are?”

“What do you mean, mother? I’m not leading her on.”

She frowned. “Thomas, are you being completely honest with me?”

“Of course I am, mother! I wouldn’t lie to you.”

“All right, then. Go ahead and find Sebastian,” Lucia said, smiling again.

Thomas stared quizzically at his mother but quietly thanked her before walking off. He thought her comment was odd, but he wouldn’t question her about it at the moment. Eventually he would ask her because Thomas didn’t understand. When had he ever led Claire on? He had thought he was always perfectly sweet to her.

The comment from his mother and worries about Claire quickly fled as he remembered he still couldn’t find Sebastian. After two more hours, he finally gave up and settled down in the gardens for a nap. If Sebastian had been here, he’d probably have called him lazy in that teasing tone of his. He wasn’t, though, so Thomas couldn’t relish one of those moments with him.

“Thomas?”

He awoke from his nap to the voice of Claire. Thomas sat up quickly, and the panic faded away when he saw it was his fiancee who had woken him up.

“Hello, Claire. I guess I fell asleep after looking for Sebastian.”

“Did you find him?”

Thomas shook his head sadly and then stood. “What brings you to the garden?”

“I was looking for you, actually,” Claire admitted as she tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. “Her Majesty said something quite strange to me a little while ago.”

“What did she say?”

“She explained that she is sorry it appears you are leading me on. The queen said that you often have your head in the clouds so it isn’t on purpose -- she still apologized, though.”

Thomas frowned. “I don’t know why she keeps insisting this. I am not leading you on, Claire. Do you feel this way? I never intended to do such a thing!”

“Oh no, Thomas,” Claire said with a small giggle. “I never felt like I was being lead on because I knew from day one where your heart truly lies.”

“I don’t understand…” Thomas muttered.

Claire shook her head. “Her Majesty was right. You do have your head in the clouds!”

“I don’t mean to be rude, Claire, but what are you going on about?”

“Your heart doesn’t lie with me, Thomas -- it lies with Sebastian!”

* * *

 

In the early morning the day after the light show, Sebastian found himself pacing in his rooms again. His show had technically gone well -- until Thomas had distracted him in a most spectacular way. Why had the prince gone and done that? It confused Sebastian, and he didn’t like being this confused. The mixed signals irritated him.

Even if Thomas hadn’t frustrated him with those mixed signals, things wouldn’t have been much different, he knew. Sebastian understood that a prince of the kingdom couldn’t just marry whom he wanted -- not that Thomas would admit to wanting him.

After a while, Sebastian collapsed onto his favorite armchair, slumping against the back of it. He couldn’t sleep, but he didn’t have it in him to so much as read. Sebastian wondered if he should ask a servant for some tea -- as Thomas’ personal wizard, he was entitled to servants to fetch him food and drink. That was a nice luxury, only he wasn’t even thirsty. He stared at the ceiling -- until Thomas’ distinctive knock interrupted his brooding.

On any other day, Sebastian would have gotten up and opened the door in an instant. Today, though, he ignored the insistent knocking. He didn’t want to talk to Thomas and quite possibly hear him extol Claire’s virtues. The wizard waited for the knocking to go away, keeping himself still and silent. He even considered using a sound-muffling spell, though he doubted the prince could hear him even without one.

The knocking went on and on, and Sebastian wondered when it would stop -- why was Thomas being so insistent, anyway? He wanted to shout at the young man to go away, though that would just alert him Sebastian was, in fact, inside. Eventually, the noise stopped -- after far too long -- and the wizard forced himself not to sigh too loudly with relief. Thomas might still be outside -- the prince could be quite stubborn.

Sebastian spent the whole morning and all the way into mid-afternoon inside his rooms -- he interacted only with the servants who bought him food, and they didn’t talk much. As little as he wanted to see Thomas, spending so much time alone felt rather unsatisfying to the wizard. He was brooding in his armchair yet again when another knock interrupted him. For a second, he thought Thomas had come back, but the knock didn’t sound like his -- it was far too delicate. Who could that be? Nobody visited him except for the young prince.

“Sebastian?” A feminine voice traveled through his door -- Claire’s.

What did she want with him? The wizard didn’t feeling like seeing her, either.

“I need to speak with you -- please open up?” Claire said. Sebastian noted how desperate she sounded. He didn’t like to admit it, but that desperation piqued his curiosity. 

Almost without meaning to, he pushed himself up from his armchair and walked over to open the door. Claire stood on the other side, a worried frown on her face. She turned it into a strained smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

“The queen has invited both of us for afternoon tea,” she murmured. “She said it’s important you join us.”

“Is Thomas going to be there?” Sebastian muttered, feeling odd nerves build in the pit of his stomach.

Claire shook her head. “He won’t be there -- Lucia specifically said he wouldn’t attend. I can tell you’re avoiding him.”

Sebastian felt his eyes widen in surprise as his cheeks burned. “You can tell that?” he said.

The lady giggled. “Oh, it’s so obvious.”

“Fine, I’ll come to tea,” he muttered, avoiding her gaze.

The wizard soon found himself sitting at a garden table with Queen Lucia and Lady Claire, feeling more awkward than he could remember. Both women looked at him, and he wished they wouldn’t.

Lucia smiled at him. It was a warm expression, but Sebastian didn’t like it. “And how are we today, Sebastian?” she asked.

“Well enough,” he muttered.

Claire picked up her teacup, giggling yet again. “I think you’d feel better if you stopped avoiding Thomas.”

Sebastian narrowed his eyes at her as he sipped his tea. “Why do you want me to stop avoiding your fiance? I’d think you’d be glad I wasn’t taking up his time.”

Her eyes sparkled. “Thomas isn’t my fiance anymore -- I broke the betrothal.”

The wizard spit out his tea, coughing and spluttering. “Wh-What? Whatever for?”

Lucia still wore that warm yet disconcerting smile. “It’s a bit unfortunate, diplomatically speaking, but Thomas and Claire just weren’t meant to be.”

“What?” Sebastian wasn’t able to be any more articulate than that.

“His heart lies elsewhere,” Claire said, looking right at the wizard.

Sebastian’s face burned -- they weren’t going to go there, were they? 

“Is -- that -- so?” he said.

“Indeed -- and I think you know where his heart does lie,” Lucia said, her eyes twinkling.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said. Sebastian knew he was lying, but he didn’t think it plausible he could be with Thomas. Why waste his time?

“You do know, don’t you?” Claire said, looking at him over her teacup. “Thomas wants you as much as you want him.”

The wizard glowered at her, not bothering with politeness. “What if he does? It’s not as if I could marry him.” It didn’t matter how much he wanted to marry Thomas.

“That’s where you’re wrong,” Lucia said. “Thomas is a second son.”

“I am aware of his birth order,” Sebastian muttered, hating the false hope. “What of it?”

“Second sons have more leeway in their choice of partner -- Thomas would be allowed to choose you without much political trouble. My Matthew already has a suitable fiancee,” the queen said, “and he’s the one who’s going to inherit the throne.”

“The only real problem is you silly boys,” Claire said, shaking her head. “You two need to stop being stubborn and admit you like each other.”

Sebastian tried to ignore the bubble of hope in his chest. He didn’t dare believe in what the women had told him.

Still, he wondered -- could he have Thomas?

* * *

 

Thomas went through a period of shock, denial, refusal, and just plain confusion after Claire spoke those words to him. He couldn’t fathom how he was in love with Sebastian -- he was supposed to have feelings for Claire. She was the one who should put a smile on his face from just thinking about her. Claire should make his heart race, but she didn’t. Sebastian always caused those sorts of reactions.

It was easy to avoid the magic user for the rest of that afternoon, but the wedding was fast approaching. With the rehearsal in two days, he was going to have to interact with Sebastian. Besides, he wanted to see him again. If Thomas couldn’t talk to him, he grew lonely and sad.

When the two finally saw each other again (a whole two days after the lightshow), awkwardness hovered between them. Thomas stared at Sebastian and then managed a lopsided smile.

“I looked everywhere for you, but I couldn’t find you,” Thomas muttered. “Were you hiding?”

“I could ask you the same thing,” Sebastian countered. It almost sounded bitter, but then he chuckled. “I just needed some time to think.”

Thomas nodded. “I needed the same thing.”

“And did you?”

“I did, but it didn’t really help.” Thomas answered hesitantly. “Did it help you?

The answer seemed to cause Sebastian’s face to fall, but a quick smile replaced that expression. “I think it helped some.”

Thomas wanted to say something to Sebastian, but, before he could, his mother finally burst into the room with his soon-to-be sister-in-law trailing closely behind. 

“Thomas, love, I need you to come stand over here. You are to be Matthew’s best man after all,” Lucia called to him.

Thomas had opposed the idea at first because he wasn’t sure he would be able to perform the duties of best man, but it was something that his entire family expected from him. He had begrudgingly accepted it and thus walked over to the place where his mother pointed.

“Is this all right, mother?”

“Yes, but be sure not to fall into the pond,” Lucia said with a smile before turning to Sebastian. “Sebastian, that light show you put here the other day was just lovely, so I was thinking you could do it again for the wedding tomorrow?”

He appeared surprised but nodded. “Yes, my lady. I’d love to.”

“Excellent!” Lucia exclaimed as she clapped her hands together. She then turned to Thomas and smiled. “Do you have the rings?”

“Matthew said he was bringing them.”

“Oh dear,” Lucia said with a loud sigh. “Where is your brother then?”

“I’m here, mother!”

Everyone turned to look at Matthew, who burst outside in a rather dramatic fashion. He stopped after he reached his mother and took a moment to catch his breath.

“Please tell me you have the rings, Matthew.”

He grinned and held out his hand. “They’re right here!”

“They look so lovely,” Lucia commented with a dreamy smile, but that smile quickly faded upon further inspection of the rings. “Matthew, did you get these engraved?”

“Well…” he started to say but then Katherine cut him off.

“I did, my lady,” Katherine admitted. “It was my idea to get the rings engraved, and I only told Matthew after the fact.”

Lucia took a deep breath. “What do they say?”

“My dear and my dearest.”

“Oh my, that sounds lovely! Please let me see!” Lucia practically squealed as she took the rings from her son’s hand. Once she got a good look the happiness quickly faded, though. “Katherine, there aren’t two ee’s in the way you meant to use the word dear.”

“I thought it would be sweet if we used changed the spelling to deer and deerest instead. Matthew loved it my lady.”

After that was said, Thomas couldn’t help himself and doubled over laughing. He heard Sebastian’s deep laughter joining him while Lucia just stood there practically horrified.

They just couldn’t help themselves.

* * *

 

Once the shock of the rings faded, his mother was back in top form. The next day, the wedding was raring to go. If one were to call it a grand affair, that would be putting it lightly. It was magnificent -- anyone could tell Lucia had worked hard on this wedding.

Thomas stood up there with his brother until it was time to take his seat, and he was mortified to find that he was sitting between Claire and Sebastian. It was probably his father’s doing because he still thought the engagement was on. When Thomas had found out yesterday night, he was shocked, but he wasn’t hurt. If anyone was going to be more hurt, it would be his father.

He took his seat and tried not to look at either Claire or Sebastian. Thomas was still so dreadfully confused, and sitting here wasn’t helping matters. The feelings he had for Claire had felt so real, but the more he thought about it, the more the prince realized that it was nothing more than adoration or friendship if you will. 

The ones he held for Sebastian were a completely different story, and it scared him. He had never even known you could feel that way about a man. Thomas had always pictured a wife and children in his head when he thought of his future. Now, the only thing he could think about was this tall, curly haired sorcerer that always put a smile on his face.

“Are you alright, Thomas? You appear to be sweating quite profusely,” Claire whispered in his ear, which effectively broke him out of his train of thought.

“I’m fine,” Thomas murmured back to her though he was anything but.

“You know, you should take his hand. It would be a sweet gesture.”

Thomas gaped at her. “You want me to do what -- and in the middle of my brother’s wedding?”

“Thomas, I know you’re scared, but he is hurting just as much as you are -- sometimes you need a gesture to show that maybe things can soon be okay.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he looked at Claire and then at Sebastian. Thomas’s fingers twitched, and, slowly, he took Sebastian’s hand in his. When the wizard (well, after the shock wore off it seemed) finally squeezed it gently, Thomas felt the fear leave him. A small feeling of acceptance replaced it.

When he looked back over at Claire, he found himself face to face with this smug grin. “What are you smiling at?”

“You two.”

Thomas flushed and just turned his attention back to the wedding.

He was still so confused, but it was a start.

* * *

 

Well, Matthew and Katherine’s wedding hadn’t quite gone as expected. Sebastian hadn’t anticipated that Thomas would take his hand in front of all those people, at such a romantic occasion, no less. Thinking of that little gesture made hope bubble in the wizard’s chest again as he lounged in his favorite armchair the morning after the wedding. Sebastian smirked to himself, though doubt still lingered in his mind. Thomas had taken his hand, but they hadn’t talked. It would be all too easy for either of them to pretend the hand-holding hadn’t taken place at all.

Thoughts of that particular possibility wiped the smirk off Sebastian’s face. He realized he was doing nothing to help the situation as he stared up at the engraved gold tiles on the ceiling. He just sat in his cushioned armchair, making no forward motion. Shouldn’t he go in search of Thomas, rather than letting himself be downright cowardly about the whole matter? His shoulders tensed as he thought of how avoidant he had been in recent days. Now was the time to end that behavior. 

Sighing, Sebastian stood up and resolved to find his friend -- he couldn’t bear to sit still anymore, his skin crawling with the need to take action. The wizard didn’t immediately leave his chambers, though -- he needed to look good if he were going to face everything. Smiling to himself, he recalled how his curls had refused to behave on that first fake date with Thomas.

Good hair wouldn’t be enough right now, though -- Sebastian looked down at his current robe, noticing its unbecoming shabbiness and at least one tear. While he could fix that tear with magic, he knew he still needed a better robe. He went into his bedchamber and changed into something more suitable -- a long, dark midnight blue robe the color of the sky the night of his first light show.

Even though good hair wouldn’t be enough, the wizard did spend quite a lot of time wrangling his curls into an acceptable shape. Sebastian prepared to leave in search of Thomas when a knock interrupted him -- the prince’s own distinctive knock.

The wizard’s heart raced at the noise, and he, for a moment, contemplated pretending not to be there. It was one thing to say he’d discuss things with Thomas and another thing entirely to face the young man.

“Sebastian? Are you in there? Can we talk?” Thomas said, sounding nervous to the wizard.

“I’m here,” he shouted, his own voice sounding nervous as well. “I’ll be there in a second.” Sebastian forced himself to take several deep breaths, but his heart still raced even after that. Reality stood on the other side of the door -- was he ready to face it?

He decided that even if he wasn’t ready -- and he wasn’t -- he couldn’t disappoint Thomas and avoid him yet again. Sebastian smoothed out his robe and walked over to open the door.

Though his voice had sounded nervous, Thomas was smiling. “I hope you’re free now because I -- have a surprise?” he said.

Sebastian raised an eyebrow, though he smiled as well. “I am free now, fortunately. You have a surprise for me? Oh, and what is this surprise?”

“It wouldn’t be a real surprise if I told you before I showed you, now would it?” Thomas said, his eyes sparkling.

“I suppose not,” he muttered, still wishing his friend would tell him what the surprise was. He didn’t know how much more emotional stress he could take.

“Follow me,” Thomas said.

Sebastian agreed, and he followed the prince out into the hallway and through the Star Palace. They didn’t speak as they walked -- Sebastian couldn’t find the words to confront the issue that lay between them, and it seemed like Thomas felt the same way. He knew he needed to get over that, but wouldn’t it be alright to see what this surprise was first?

After a while, the wizard found himself in one of the gardens of the palace. What kind of surprise could Thomas have for him here?

“It’s just around the corner,” Thomas said, grinning.

When Sebastian turned the corner around a tall hedge, he saw that a metal table sat in the garden, and two places were set on it. It looked like the setup for a fancy meal -- there was a white tablecloth, and the vase at the center of the table held a bouquet of red roses like the ones Thomas had given him on their first fake date. This looked like something for a real date.

Thomas’ grin faded, replaced by obvious anxiety. “I -- it might not be much, but I...thought we should do something maybe like a...a real date? I told the servants to prepare your favorite meal? If you want it?”

“What?” Sebastian said, blinking.

“You...don’t like it?” Thomas’ face fell.

The wizard shook his head. “I like it -- it’s just...unexpected,” he murmured, trying to clear his mind.

“Let’s sit down?”

Sebastian nodded, and they sat down at the table. Almost instantly -- or so it felt -- servants appeared to bring them tea and the first course. The wizard started on his food as soon as it arrived because he wasn’t sure what to say to Thomas. His friend had gone out of his way to do this, and it stunned him.

Unlike him, Thomas didn’t start eating. The prince watched Sebastian with those huge hazel eyes of his. Sebastian felt his gaze, and he knew someone needed to break the silence.

“I don’t know what I’m doing,” Thomas said, his voice almost inaudible.

Somehow, Sebastian managed to smirk. “You don’t? Well, this is certainly a good start.” A good start to what, exactly?

“I...like you, but…”

Hearing that, Sebastian’s stomach flipped. “But what?”

“But I’m -- I’m so confused. I never even liked someone before, not really. Not...like this,” he said. “And I...never thought you could like another man.”

The wizard placed his hand over Thomas’ own. His friend’s lovely eyes widened at that, but he didn’t draw back.

“It’s okay to be confused,” Sebastian said. “These things are confusing. But -- I like you, too, and that’s what matters, isn’t it?” Hope bubbled in his chest yet again.

Thomas nodded, a shy smile forming on his face. “I guess it is, but...can we take things slow? Because I don’t know what I’m doing? I...don’t want to mess anything up.”

Sebastian smiled, his own smile much less shy than Thomas’. The hope bubbling in his chest overflowed, and he couldn’t believe his luck. “We can do things slowly, if that’s what you truly want,” he said. 

Part of him wanted to do anything but take it slow, but he was willing to let Thomas set the pace.

He would do anything to make this work.

* * *

Epilogue

 

“Claire…” Thomas started to say, but before he could, Claire waved her hand and smiled.

“It’s perfectly fine, Thomas. I understand if you want to go spend time with Sebastian after being away on that three week hunting trip with your brother. By the way, how was it?”

“It was… interesting,” Thomas said with a smile, but then a frown replaced it. “I can’t just go off, though. You’ve barely returned to the kingdom!”

Claire laughed and gave Thomas a firm but gentle push. “I will be visiting for the entire month, Thomas. We’ll still have plenty of time to spend with one another.”

He looked at her and then smiled shyly before kissing her gently on the cheek. After that, he was off to find Sebastian, and Claire could only giggle happily at the thought. It was six months after her initial trip back home, and it pleased Claire to see that, in her absence, Thomas had accepted his feelings and grown even fonder of Sebastian (well, if that was even possible).

Once she got back home, Claire had started exchanging letters with the two and had finally convinced her parents to let her go visit her friends. It only filled her with happiness to see Thomas run off, and tomorrow she would spend some time with them -- as well as find out the latest gossip surrounding their relationship. However, for that she would go to Lucia, whom she was quite fond of as well.

Claire let out another giggle and then continued out to the gardens. It was her intended destination before Thomas had found her in the hallway. She just made it to the gardens when someone bolted past her. They tried to avoid knocking into her, but their shoulders collided, which sent Claire flying towards the ground.

“Well that was unexpected,” Claire muttered as she stared up at the bright sky in a daze.

“I am so sorry!”

Claire barely had time to think of a response to the words before she was pulled to her feet rather roughly. She stumbled a bit but eventually regained her balance.

“My lady, again I am so sorry. I am just in a hurry to get to training!”

“It’s quite alright,” Claire said as she blinked a few times to clear her vision. It was only then she was able to get a good look at the person talking to her. She was taller than Claire, with long, dark brown hair plaited to the side -- but that wasn’t the part that caught Claire off guard. The knight’s armor the stranger wore was what did it.

“I am quite sorry.”

Claire shook her head. “There is no need to apologize, but if you don’t mind, could you answer a question?”

“Yes, anything, my lady.”

“Are you a knight?”

She blinked and then bowed her head slightly. “I am Joan, my lady, and yes I am indeed a knight.”

“A woman can be a knight?”

“Queen Lucia insisted upon my joining the knights, and the King was quick to agree,” Joan said with a wink.

Claire’s eyes lit up. “May I watch?”

“Of course, my lady.”


End file.
